Talking-machine attachment.



P. J. HENRY. TALKING MACHINE ATTACHMENT. APPLICATION FILED 0011a, 1911' Patented Aug. 20, 1912 awmm v Peyion IZEIZIZ'Y area."

PEYTON J. HENRY, OF CHARLOTTE, NORTH CAROLINA.

TALKING-MACHINE ATTACHMENT.

Specification of Letters Eatent.

Patented Aug. 20, 1912.

Application filed October 18, 1911. Serial No. 655,261.

I '0 all whom it may concern."

Be it known that I, PnY'roN J. HENRY, a citizen of the United States, residing at Charlotte, in' the, county of Mecklenburg andState of North Carolina, have invented new and useful Improvements in Talking Machine Attachments, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to an attachment for talking machines, the object of the invent-ion being to provide a damper and modulator of simple, cheap and elficient construction, which may be readily attached tothe sound-box of a machine for dampening and regulating the sound-producing mechanism at will and eliminating the harshness and squeakiness of the sounds sometimes produced and at the same time rendering the enunciation of thesound-producing' mechanism clearer and more distinct.

A further object of the invention is to provide a device of this character which may be employed for governing the vibrations-of the diaphragm and stylusairm to a greater or less extent without injury thereto, which may be thrown out of operation without removal from the sound-box when desired, and which may be attached to and detached from the sound-box in a ready and convenient manner.

The invention consists of the features of construction, combination and arrangement of parts hereinafter fully described and claimed, reference being had to the accompanying drawings, in which Figure 1 is a front elevation of the sound box of a talking machine with my device attached thereto. Fig. 2 is a sectional plan view of the same. Fig. 3 is a detail section through the bracket and damper and show ing the adjusting screw. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the device detached. 1

Referring to the drawings, 1 designates the sound-box of a graphophone or similar talking instrument; 2 the vibrating diaphragm or disk thereof; and 3 the styluscarrying arm which communicates vibratory motion to the disk.

Theattachment comprises a longitudinally bowed bracket 4, formed of -a strip of spring metal, and which is provided with rearwardly projecting jaws 5 to embrace the opposite sides of the sound-box and in- .wardly projecting fingers 6 to engage the rear of the sound-box, whereby the bracket felt or other suitable soft material.

is clamped inposition. The bracket is adapted to extend transversely across the front of the soundbox and may be applied and detached by a transverse sliding movement, as will be readilyuuderstood. \The central portion of the body of the bracket has fixed thereto an internally threaded bearing 7 through which passes an adjusting screw 8 having at its outer end a milled head. or finger piece 9. The inner end of the screw darrics a damper 10, swiveled to the screw and provided with a layer llof y means of the screw the damper may be adustcd inwardly to bear with greater, or less pressure upon the diaphragm, to regulate its degree of vibration to any desired extent. A. stop shoulder 12 is provided on the screw to engage the bracket, whereby inward movement of the screw is limited, so that the damper cannot be adjusted to bear to an injurious extent against the diaphragm." The swivel connection between the screw and damper permits the screw to be turned independently of the damper when the latter contacts with the diaphragm, thus preventing rotary motion of the damper and consequent injury to the diaphragm. A dampening arm or projection 12' is carried by the body portion of the bracket and has its inner end 14 arranged to project bet-ween the diaphragm and stylus-arm when the bracket is applied in position. justable into engagement with the styluscarrying arm when the damper is adjusted into engagement with the disk, througl'i the outward bowing of the body of the bracket under the resistance up by the diaphragm, whereby the extent of vibrationof the stylus-arm may also be varied to the desired degree. It will thus be seen that the amplitude of the vibrations of both the diaphragm and the stylus-arm may be simultaneously regulated, and the soundproducing mechanism. thus dampened or modulated to vary the volume of sound of the instrument as occasion or fancy may require, whereby the harshness and squeaki-- ness of tone'sometimes produced may be eliminated or reduced to a material extent and the sound modulated to regulate" the tone. The instrument may'also thus be controlled to regulate the enunciation and increase thcdistiuctncss of talking tones.'

The device may be readily and con eniently applied to and removed from the sound-boxes of talking instruments of the character described, is simple and inexpensive in construction, and isadapted to efficiently perform the desired functions.

Having thus described\ the invention, what I claim as, new is:

The combination with a sound-box and its diaphragm, of a stylus-arm, a modulator comprising a bracket adapted to terminally engage the sound-boxand extend diametrically thereof, said bracket being provided with a threaded bearing, an adjusting screw engaging said threaded bearing, a damper swiveled. to the screw and adapted to en gage the diaphragm, said damper being provided with a contact surface of soft ma terial, and an angularly bent resilient damper arm secured at one end to I the bracket and having its free end arranged at anangle thereto and parallel with the adapted to engage the stylus-arm and to be adjusted with the dampening device by means of the screw to vary its dampening pressure.

In testimony whereof I aflix my signature surface of-the diaphragm, saidflarm being 

